


Summer Sun, Somethings Begun

by Sunflowers_And_Bluebelles



Category: IT (2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Summer Camp, F/M, Fluff and Angst, I'll add more tags as i go, I'm really excited about this fic, M/M, and some fluff, i love this au sm, theres gonna be some angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-28
Updated: 2018-01-15
Packaged: 2019-01-22 08:01:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12476980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sunflowers_And_Bluebelles/pseuds/Sunflowers_And_Bluebelles
Summary: Eddie is excited about summer. He's excited about seeing his friends, and having a break from his overbearing mother, and of course he's excited about summer camp.He is definitely not excited about having to spend all summer with Richie Tozier._________________A summer camp AU where Richie and Eddie are camp instructors together and have to deal with each other for the whole summer





	1. The start of summer

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Camp Safe and Amusing](https://archiveofourown.org/works/3942913) by [Talking_Bird](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Talking_Bird/pseuds/Talking_Bird). 



> Hi! I am so excited for this fic, i remember absolutely falling in love with au the first time i read it (if you're a fan of peraltiago check out this awesome fic that inspired mine called Camp Safe and Amusing by Talking_Bird its really really good) and now I'm writing my own! Feel free to leave comments about all the good and bad things, as this is my first story i could really use some comments on how I'm going!

It was finally summer and Eddie was excited. Excited because for the summer he would be going back to his summer camp, now as a leader at age 18. He remembered his first day of summer camp, when he was 10 years old. It took him 3 months to convince his mum, but it had been worth it. So, she helped pack his bag (making sure he had all his pills with him for the weeks ahead) and sent him on his way.

It was there where he met his two best friends, Bill and Stan. Bill was a few months older then him, with straight brown hair and a stutter. Eddie used to be taller than both boys back when they were 10, but when they came back after their third year, both boys had shot up. Bill now stood at 6’1 and Stan at 5’10, leaving Eddie at 5’6. Stan was a Jewish boy with messy curly hair and was the voice of reason in their group. The two boys had grown incredibly close after Eddie had been pushed in a nearby lake in their first year and Stan and Bill, being the closest ones around, swam to help him out. I guess after you save someone’s life you have kinda have to become friends. That was their reason, anyway. And now it was their last year before going away for college and Eddie couldn’t be any more excited.

He turned off his engine stood out of the car, his music still blaring from inside.

 

_“Oh, I wanna dance with somebody_

_I wanna feel the heat with somebody”_

What could he say, he was a sucker for 80s music.

He clipped on his fanny pack, with his inhaler inside. When he was 13, he basically found out the medicine his mother had given him all his life was complete bullshit, but he still kept his inhaler with him, just in case. The sun was beaming down on him heavily, so he took out the bottle of sunscreen in his car and started applying it evenly.

 “Oh my God” Eddie turned around quickly and saw a boy his age leaning on his car, his eyebrow raised in surprised. Eddie’s first instinct was that the boy was somewhat attractive, minus his strange outfit choices. That instinct immediately vanished when he saw that his smirk was aimed at him and that whatever came out his mouth next, Eddie knew he wouldn’t like. “Is that a fucking fanny pack?!”

Eddie touched it consciously and frowned, holding one hand to shield his eyes from the sun. Okay. Not what he expected, but still, what did he think it was, a fucking belt?

“Yeah?”

The boy snorted and walked over to him, lazily lifting one hand for a shake. Eddie glanced at it, a slight trace of disgust on his face. Didn’t he know how many germs could be contracted with just a single handshake?! No, of course he didn’t. Curse his mother.

“Richie Tozier.”

Eddie glanced at the boy’s hand and then back up at his face. He guessed it wouldn’t hurt to shake his hand, there were plenty of people at this camp so he probably wouldn’t be seeing much of him anyway.

“Eddie. Eddie Kaspbrak.”

Richie smiled at him brightly and let go of his hand. 

“Well it is _fantastic_ to meet you Eddie Spaghetti”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Sure Eds.”

“Or that.”

“Whatever you say, Edward.”

“You know I actually have to get going so-” Eddie began to move away from the boy in front of him, giving him a small wave. “It was nice to meet you, Richie.”

Richie nodded, still smiling and gave him a wave with the flick of his wrist as he walked away.

“See you around Eds”

Eddie shook his head as he walked away. He knew that they would never really get along, their personalities were already too different. Still, he didn’t have to worry about that anymore. There was going to be plenty of other leaders and campers at this place. No, he was sure their paths would never really cross again.

 

Eddie was sure he wouldn’t be seeing Richie Tozier around.

__________________________

How wrong Eddie was.

He arrived at the table inside the cafeteria where Stan and Bill always met him, five minutes early. He happily waited for them, watching the other leaders set up for the campers coming the next day. In an hour, the owner of the camp would come out and put them all in groups and ages. That age group would be their responsibility for the summer and Eddie couldn’t be more excited. He wanted to make sure the kids enjoyed this experience as much as he did.

His smile brightened as he saw Stan and Bill walking up to him but faltered when he saw they were talking to somebody else. Somebody else who was walking towards _their_ table. His mood completely dropped when he realised _who_ they were talking to.

“Eddie Spaghetti!”

“Oh no.”

Bill grinned at seeing Eddie and moved to hug his friend. Stan and Bill went to the same school so they saw each other often, but rarely saw Eddie.

“E-Eddie! This is R-Richie! He goes to the same s-s-school as us!”

“But I’m guessing you two already know each other?” Stan questioned, looking between the two boys suspiciously.

“No!” Eddie exclaimed, a little too loudly compared to Richie’s “Yes” which was said at the same time. “I mean, we met out at the car park. For like, 2 minutes.”

“Ah yes…” Richie said, his eyes looking up at the roof as if he is looking up at stars. “A moment I shall always cherish… Not as much as that moment I had with your mum though.” Richie winked at Eddie and Eddie gave him a look of disgust.

“What the fuck? That’s gross man.”

Stan shook his head, a small smile now on his face.

“Don’t worry, you’ll get used to him.”

The four boys continued to talk, Eddie and Richie always bickering throughout. Eventually the owner came up to the front and loudly cleared her voice, signalling for the chatter to end.

“Alright, alright, let’s settle down. Now, some of you may know me, but I’m Lilian. I’m glad to see some familiar faces joining us again-” She glanced over the crowd, looking at certain people, including Eddie, Stan and Bill. “and some new ones! Now let’s all make sure that this year is the best year yet!” She moved over to a chalkboard with several papers pinned on it. “Now on this board is you age level, plus the group you will be working with for the summer. You will be working in pairs and please understand that these groups can no longer be changed. Thank you for your time.” 

An excited chatter filled the air as everyone tried to have a peak at who was their partner and what group they had. Eddie, being one of the smallest there, didn’t get to the board until the very end. Finally, he pushed past the last few people and attempted to find his name on the sheet of paper.

 

_Eddie Kaspbrak                           Richie Tozier                                   12 yrs_

Eddie wanted to hit his head on the corkboard. Of course, he was with Richie Tozier.

 

How fucking typical.

 

____________________

 

“I’m sorry Eddie, but I said it before. These groups are non-negotiable. It’s too late to change everything up now.”

“But please, maybe if-”

“There’s nothing I can do Eddie.”

“You don’t understand, we just don’t get along-”

 “I chose these groups because I knew you would work well together, please don’t let me down.” Lilian’s voice stayed friendly but firm. Eddie knew that there was no changing her mind. She put her hand on his shoulder and smiled down at him. “You can make this work Eddie, I know you can.” He nodded his head and began to walk away, disappointed.

“Eds!”

The sound of running footsteps came from behind him and quickly, Richie Toizer was walking next to him, his large coke bottle glasses sitting comfortably on his nose. Eddie quickly tried to cover the look of disgust which was noticeably on his face, as he didn’t want to be rude.

“Hello, Richie.”

Richie still has his signature shit eating grin on his face as they walked towards their friends, Eddie still refusing to make eye contact. “So… you read the board?”

Eddie sighed and stopped, finally looking at his new partner for the summer, who’s Hawaiian shirt (seriously, who was this guy??) was half tucked into his pants, his smile still oblivious. God help him. He couldn’t help but find his goofy personality somewhat contagious, and tried his best to hide a smile, replacing it with an eye roll instead.

“Of course I’ve read the board.”

Richie continued to talk as they both sat down at the table where Bill and Stan were waiting, with another boy Eddie had never seen before. “Good! So you know we’re partners!”

Before Eddie could reply, Stan spoke. “Oh, you guys are together? That’s pretty lucky.” Bill nodded in agreement. Stan noticed Eddies glances at the boy next to him and realised he probably introduce him. “This is Ben, by the way. His family just moved near here.”

“It’s nice to meet you!” Ben held out his hand enthusiastically and Eddie took it, shaking it quickly before placing his hand back on his bouncing knee. Ben seemed like a nice guy, he was definitely friendly, and he sat like he was already a part of the group. Eddie felt as though maybe he was.

“So, are you guys with?” Eddie asked, wanting to continue the conversation. He also saw Bill’s eyes wondering during their talk and wondered if that anything to do with the groups.

“I’m with this guy called Mike, he’s really nice, I’ll bring him over here and introduce you all to him later. And Bill is with Bev.” Stan finished with a smirk, knowing that Bill had liked Bev since their third year, when they had to kiss in the camps play that year. Eddie followed where Bills eyes kept wondering, and sure enough they landed on a red head girl a few tables away, laughing with her friends. She was definitely pretty, but she wasn’t his type. He didn’t really know what his type was.

“What about you Ben?”

“Oh, I’m with this girl called Stacy! She’s very nice, we’re looking after the 13 year olds together.”

“Y-yeah, me and Bev have the e-e-eight year olds.” Bill said, very happily. Everyone wanted the eight year olds, as they were the youngest and honestly the easiest to deal with. Eddie found himself jealous, as the 12 year olds could be a pain sometimes.

“What about you Stan?” Richie asked, his arm resting on his knee and one foot on the bench he was sharing with Eddie.

“I’ve got the 17 year olds.”

Having the older kids was also more of a challenge as they were closer to your age group. You’d either get along with them really well or they’d hate you, although Eddie noticed that Stan didn’t look worried.  Eddie would be worried though, especially after his encounter with some of the 17 year olds.

Before Eddie could say anymore, Lilian stood up at the front, attempting to get everybody’s attention. She stood on chair, her hair still up in her typical pony tail in a cap with the camp logo on the front.

“Alright everybody, settle down! Now I’m sure you’ve all seen who your partner will be this year, you may now move to set up your dorms, ready for the kids tomorrow. Each cabin is marked with a number, which is your group year. After you’ve finished, come back for some dinner and then you are free for the night!”

Eddie looked up at Richie who wasn’t even paying attention, instead scribbling something on the wooden table they were all sitting at. Bill was already out of his seat and walking over to Beverly. Eddie smiled at his friend, before returning his attention to his own partner. Eddie knew this was going to be horrible, just by looking at Richie he knew that he would leave his side of the room messy. No longer able to put off the inevitable, Eddie stood up, gesturing Richie to the same. The two boys silently walked over to their cabin, finally seeing one with a large _12_ on the front. Richie opened the door and walked in. Eddie followed after, and noticed how much bigger the dorms had gotten since he was here last. The cabins had two rooms on one side, one for girls and one for boys, with a bathroom and another dorm on the other side of the room which Eddie guessed was for him and Richie. In the middle was a few benches and tables, which was where people could hang out when all the activities where finished for the day.

“Holy shit, this cabin is fucking huge.” Richie commented, glancing around the room. Eddie nodded in agreement, still admiring the changes from last year. “Almost as big as my wang.” Eddie spun around in surprise and Richie couldn’t help but laugh out loud at Eddies shocked face. “Oh my god Eds, you should see your face right now.” He managed to get out between giggles.

“Shut the fuck up.” Eddie muttered, his face burning red.

“No, no Eddie, I think it’s cute you get so flustered at the thought of my dick-”

“Oh my god.” Eddie groaned. Could this get any worse?

“I mean it’s not that I blame you, your mum sure does agree-“

 _“Stop.”_ Eddie complained, unable to hear anymore of Richie’s talk. “Just shut up Trashmouth.”

“Trashmouth… That’s a nice nickname. Look at us Eddie Spaghetti, already best friends.” Richie placed his arm  around Eddie's shoulder, much to Eddies dismay. "You alright there Eds? You seem a bit quiet."

Eddie took a deep breath and stared up at the much taller boy. “Look Richie, we are never going to get along. We’re just too different, let’s just stay out of each other’s way as much as possible and make these weeks as easy as they can be, okay?” He didn’t mean to be so blunt so suddenly, but Richie was really getting on his nerves. Eddie noticed Richie’s smile faltered a bit and Eddie suddenly felt bad. Was he being too harsh? 

“Completely understandable Eddie! But I must warn you, it will be difficult for me to ignore your wondrous charm.”

Eddie rolled his eyes, trying to ignore the blush which was rising on his face again. At least he wasn’t hurt at Eddies statement before. Maybe they could make this work. Maybe if Eddie had stayed a bit longer he would have seen Richie’s smile drop completely and his hand run through his hair as he tried not to look so disappointed. Maybe he would have seen him walk into their room and close the door, his eyes slightly sadder then before. Maybe he would have seen how much his words did effect Richie, but Richie was used to it by now.

 

But Eddie didn’t see any of it, and instead walked to dinner without Richie Tozier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, chapter one is out of the way! I'm not sure how many chapters this story will have, but it will probably be around 5. Also, I'm pretty terrible at staying on top of things so forgive me if i am terrible at posting, as I'm half way through my school term at the moment. Thank you for reading this far, i hope you are enjoying it :)


	2. Walk with me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie and Richie try to get along and look after 20 kids.
> 
> What could go wrong?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> School and exams are finally over so I can continue posting!! Woo!

Eddie didn’t really think much of it when Richie never followed him to dinner, and instead enjoyed his time with his friends – old and new. He finally met Mike and spoke to Beverly for the first time in a few years. Mike was quiet at first, but really seemed to open up around the group. He was quite strong built, but the others soon found out he was a big softie underneath. Beverly was pretty much the same as when Eddie first met her a few years ago – always speaking with such a fire in her eyes. Although Eddie found it wasn’t dangerous, but instead was filled with excited and warmed the room.

“H-hey Eddie, where’s R-Richie? I wanted to in-introduce him to everyone.”

Eddie looked at Bill, escaping his thoughts. Where was Richie?

“Who’s Richie?” Mike asked, looking at his new friends.

“He’s just a friend of ours, you’ll see him around tomorrow I’m sure, it’s hard to miss him.” Stan replied, taking a bite of his dinner.

Everyone who knew him chuckled in response, Eddie quickly forgetting Richie. They slowly learnt more things about each other, like how Ben was a huge history nerd, and when his parents made him move town, he would learn everything about its history to make himself feel better, or how Mike had been living with grandfather for a few years after he lost his parents in a fire, or how Beverly had lived with her aunt since she was thirteen, although she never explained why.

Eddie was growing to really like his new friends, even if he was apprehensive about them joining their group at first. Eddie couldn’t help but smirk at Bill’s longing looks at Beverly while they sat at dinner and Bev’s shy smiles at him when he looked away. Too soon dinner was over, and Lilian was telling everyone to put away their dinner plates, ending their chatter. They all began walking back, saying goodbye to Bev and Bill first as their cabin was the closest. Mike and Stan had to cross over the river to get to the 16 and 17 cabins, and said goodnight to Eddie and Ben.

Eddie was happy to walk with Ben alone, as they hadn’t had a chance to speak properly. Ben excitedly told Eddie all about the camps history, and actually listened to Eddies complaints about the different types of germs that can be found in public places and how much he hated his mother for making him think like that. Eddie realised that they had stopped outside Eddie and Richie’s cabin while Eddie was talking. He expected Ben to look annoyed that he had made him stand out in the cold for ages, but instead Ben looked interested in what Eddie was saying. It took Eddie by surprise to see someone still paying attention to what Eddie was saying when he went on one of his rants. He knew Stan and Bill always meant well, but he understood that he could go on for a while. Eddie felt so much appreciation for his new friend as he said goodnight and walked away.

“Goodnight Eddie, I hope things get better with your mum. And I’ll make sure to always wear shoes in public places!”

Eddie smiled and went to open the dorm door, before remembering that Richie never came to dinner. Despite his annoyance for his new partner, he was still quite concerned. He opened their shared dorm room and saw him fast asleep on the other side of the room. He smiled and got into his own bed, staring up at the ceiling above before falling asleep.

  
__________________________

 

“GET UP OL CHAP, ITS MORNIN TIME”

Eddie woke up with a start and glared at Richie, who had the campers uniform on, a dull white top with green shorts. Eddie rolled his eyes and moved to get out of bed.

“I’m getting up, I’m getting up…” Eddie mumbled, grabbing his own uniform. He glanced over at Richie who was grinning at him and raised his eyebrow. “Um… do you mind…?” Richie quickly realised what he meant and put his thumbs up before walking out of the room.

When Eddie left the room, he was surprised to see Richie still waiting for him. “Finally, Eds, my man! Shall we meet our little minions?”

“Campers Richie. They’re called campers.” God, it was only 9 in the morning and Eddie was already tired of Richie.

Once the two had walked outside, Eddie saw two large buses already parked out the front and a group of kids crowded around Lilian. Some Eddie recognized from the years before but most were new faces, looking around excitedly. Lilian looked up when Richie and Eddie walked up and smiled.  
“Ah finally, here is our last two counselors!”

Richie grabbed Eddie around his shoulders and pulled him closer. “Sorry, this one wanted to sleep in.”

Most of the kids laughed with Richie at Eddie’s annoyed face that eventually Eddie let out a giggle himself.

“Gay!” someone coughed in the crowd. Eddie’s face immediately went pale and he stepped away from Richie, who’s smile had disappeared. Lilian mouth had turned into a thin frown as she scanned the crowd.

“Henry Bowers. My office, now.”

Eddie glanced sideways at Richie whose face was back to its usual smile, although there was something in his eyes that made Eddie think that he wasn’t feeling as happy as he looked. Eddie still felt uncomfortable but stood his ground next to Richie and tried to mimic his smile.

“Now then. Campers, these are your counselors! You will be spending a majority of the time with two of these wonderful people, so I want you all to be on your best behavior!” She cleared her throat and looked at her clipboard. “Okay, all 8 year olds, you will be with Beverly and Bill!”

Bill nervously stood forward with Bev next to him, smiling at all the kids.

“Hey guys! I’m Bev, and this is Bill! We are going to make sure you guys have the best time ever, okay?”

All the young kids looked up at Bev in awe. Bill looked proudly at his partner and both of them moved the kids to get them to their cabin.

“9 year olds, you’re with Lily and Chloe, 10 year olds with Jason and Millie. 11 year olds, you’re with Mark and Nancy, 12 year olds, you’re with Eddie and Richie-” Eddie looked over at Richie and signaled with his head that they should probably get moving. Richie nodded and cleared his throat.

“ALRIGHTY! I am Richie Tozier the awesome and this is Eddie Kaspbrak the lame.” All the kids laughed at that. Eddie scowled. “And we are going to be your leaders! Who likes eating junk food at midnight!” The kids cheered and Eddie looked at Richie in surprise.

“Richie, we have to be looking after these kids! We have to be responsible!”

“Lame!” One of the kids yelled from the crowd. Richie smirked back at Eddie.

“Sorry Eds, the children have spoken.”

Richie began walking in the front like a leader of a marching band and most of the kids quickly followed. Eddie noticed that some were staying behind, rolling their eyes at Richie’s energy.

“I don’t think you’re lame.”

Eddie suddenly realised that one of the boys had started walking next to him, very quietly. The boy had quite a small frame, with curly hair. He looked down at the floor, kicking the dirt slightly has they walked.

“Thank you- uh, what’s your name?”

“Brian.”

“Well thank you Brian. I normally don’t listen to Richie, he’s an idiot sometimes.”

“You are friends though, right?” Brian questioned, looking up at Eddie for the first time.

“Uh, well-” Eddie looked at Richie who was at the moment trying to swing on a tree branch right outside their cabin, with some of the kids howling with laughter at the sight. Eddie smiled.

“Yeah. Yeah we’re friends.”

  
_________________________________

  
After all the campers had put their bags away, it was time to get to know everyone. Eddie lead all the kids to the middle of the room to sit down, to do the compulsory game of going around and saying your name and one thing about yourself. Eddie personally hated the game when was a camper but knew that it had to be done.

“Alright guys, settle down!” Eddie yelled, trying to silence the 20 kids chatter. “Now, let’s all go around the room and say something about each other, okay? I’ll go first. My names Eddie and I’ve been coming to this camp since I was 10.”

Richie snorted and Eddie looked at him, raising an eyebrow.

“That’s such an easy fact, my god Eds, be creative!”

“Okay then Trashmouth, you go first.”

“I will. Hello everybody, I am Richie Tozier and once broke a game at the arcade because I was that fucking good.”

Some of the kids giggled at Richie’s ‘fact’, others rolled their eyes.

“Richie! We can’t swear in front of them!” Eddie said, his voice in a panic.

“Calm down grandpa, we can swear whenever we fucking want.”

Eddie glanced at the girl who was speaking. He recognized her as one of the girls who never laughed at Richie’s jokes and always stayed at the back, chewing her gum. Eddie swore if she rolled her eyes anymore, she might see the back of her head.

“What’s your name?” Richie said, his face obviously unimpressed.

“Melissa.” She snapped, popping the bubble of gum coming out of her mouth.

“Well, Melissa. Why don’t you say something then?”

“No thanks. I’m good,” she said, leaning back slightly.

Richie looked over at Eddie, who shrugged his shoulders, signally Richie to just move on. Eddie really didn’t feel like having a fight with a 12 year old and he could tell there was no getting her to participate.  
Richie did continue on and eventually everyone had gone around the circle. Eddie hated picking favorites but he found himself liking Brian, the shy boy who had come up to him before. He looked quite pale and thin, and reminded Eddie of himself. Richie of course had plenty of the campers gushing over him. Eddie even noticed a few girls giggling every time he came near them. Finally, it was time for the first activity of the day.

There wasn’t much time, meaning whatever activity they chose would be cut in half. Eddie advised the campers to choose the activity they liked the least. Immediately most of the kids yelled out ‘Hike!’.  
“Looks like the children have spoken, Eds.”

  
_________________________________

  
The hike was easy to set up at least. All they had to do was putting on their walking shoes and show the campers where to go, giving them a map each and warning them not to go off the trail.

“Okay, I want you guys to all go into pairs please! That way it will be harder to get lost,” Eddie yelled over the noise which had built up as soon as he said pairs, people already trying to get to their friends before they were taken. “Everyone ready? Okay let’s go.”

The walk was easy enough, one they got up the steepest part at the start. Eddie and Richie walked at the back, to make sure no one would trail behind and get lost. There was a chatter amongst the group, Eddie even noticing that Brian was speaking to his partner at times. Some of the girls had stayed behind to talk to Richie, making Eddie suddenly feel very left out. Richie told the girls something, and they all began to walk faster, a slight frown on their face.

“It’s pretty easy, isn’t it?” Richie beamed, looking at the campers walking in front. “Being a leader, I mean. I thought the kids wouldn’t like me at all.”

Eddie looked over at Richie. Sure, once you looked past his hugely obnoxious attitude and ego, Eddie could understand why everyone was so fixated on him. He definitely oozed cool, with his shades that he never took off and a smirk that seemed to be permanently glued on his face. Plus, in this sunlight, Eddie swore his hair was glowing, the dark brown catching the sun perfectly. And when he laughed – really laughed, Eddie noticed that he would always start clapping his hands and have little creases under his eyes.

“Uh, earth to Eds?” Richie chuckled, waving a hand in front of Eddies eyes, which were staring directly at him.

“Don’t call me that, asshole.” Eddie mumbled, a blush rising onto his cheeks.

“You love it,” Richie laughed.

Eddie grew even more embarrassed at the sound of the pet name Richie had christened Eddie with.

Shit. Maybe he did.  
_________________________________  
Eddie found himself really enjoying the hike, especially as he had Richie to keep him company. Eddie hated to admit it, but the guy could be really funny when he wanted to be. Plus, they had a surprising large amount in common. Eddie was so distracted, laughing at one of Richie’s many jokes, that he didn’t notice they had made it to last checkpoint, meaning it was time to begin walking back to the cabins.

“Okay guys, great job! You’ve all done really well today, let’s just have a quick head count and then we can start heading back.” Eddie said happily.

Eddie was dragged away by one the girls, complaining about a graze on her knee while Richie was counting.

“Uh, Eddie?”

“Yeah Rich, what’s wrong?” Eddie turned to face Richie after putting a Band-Aid on the girl, and couldn’t help but notice his worried look.

“How many kids do we have?”

“20. Why?” Eddie questioned nervously.

“That’s what I was afraid of.” Eddies eyes widened, not wanting to hear what was coming next. “We only have 19.”

The uproar of noise happened barely a second after the news. Everyone was looking around, trying to see if they could notice who was missing.

“Hold it everyone!” Eddie was really struggling to get everyone’s attention. “Guys, please be quiet while we try to-”

“ _Everyone shut it_!” The noise fell almost as quickly as it came, everyone turning to look at Richie, their eyes wide with panic. “Thank you. Now, everyone had a partner, who didn’t follow our _clear_ instructions and _left their partner_ ”

Eddies eyes immediately fell on a girl looking sheepishly at the ground, trying to avoid eye contact.

“Rachel, isn’t it?” Eddie asked, trying to remember her from this morning.

She looked up at Eddie and almost burst into tears.

“Melissa! S-she borrowed my mascara and broke it! I got mad and walked with Riley and Georgia instead! I d-didn’t think she’d get lost, I swear!” She whimpered out.

Eddie looked down at her in sympathy. He believed her, of course, but that didn’t change the fact that there was a 12 year old girl walking around alone.

“Well shit! What are we meant to do now?” Richie asked to no one in particular, brushing his hands through his hair.

“We have to find her!”

“Fantastic! Let’s just leave a bunch of 12 year olds alone while we look for _another_ 12 year old who you lost!”

“Who _I_ lost?! No way, this is just as much your fault as mine, asshole! Don’t you dare-”

“ _Eddie shut up_ ” Richie interrupted, shushing Eddie with his hands.

“ _Excuse me_? Listen, Trashmouth-”

“I think I can hear someone crying!”

Eddie stopped moving and listened. Sure enough, he could hear it as well. It sounded muffled and far away, but there was definitely someone crying out there.

“Melissa!” Both boys yelled at the same time and began to run off.

“Wait Richie, we can’t leave the others! You stay, I’ll quickly grab her and bring her back!”

Richie looked doubtful, but begrudgingly turned back to look after the other campers.

Eddie continued through the light shrub, following the sound. His worry for the girl had almost made him forget how angry he was with Richie. He finally reached a tree, with a young girl curled up under it, crying.

“Melissa?”

The snuffling stopped and Melissa looked up at Eddie. For second he was sure she was going to say some snarky remark. Instead, she stood up and raced over, hugging him.

“Y-you found me!” She said through tears. “I thought I was going to d-die out here!”

Eddie chuckled at patted her head awkwardly. “You were only like, 3 minutes from where we were.”

Eddie walked Melissa back to the group, letting her be surrounded by the worried words of all her friends. (“I’m so sorry! You can borrow my mascara whenever, I swear!)

It was unbelievable how everything worked out, and Eddie was already exhausted on the first day. He had no idea how he would survive a whole summer of this.

“I’m sorry for what I said Eddie. I didn’t mean it, it was never your fault.” Eddie looked up at Richie who was frowning back.

“I know.” Eddie smiled, bumping into Richie lightly. “Asshole.”

Richie chucked and threw his arm around Eddie, pulling him closer.

“Hey Richie?”

“Mmm?”'

Eddie looked down at the ground, embarrassed. “I’m sorry for what I said yesterday. You’re not annoying, you’re my friend.”

Richie smiled down at Eddie. A real, genuine smile. “I’m really glad we’re friends, Eddie Kaspbrak.”

“Yeah.” Eddie smiled. “Me too, Richie Tozier. Me too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like to see Ben and Eddie being close friends as I don’t see it written much and Ben is just such a sweetheart and that needs to be acknowledged. (also I am sorry to all the many benverly shippers out there, I love ben/bev but I just rarely see any bill/bev)


	3. My friends are family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> some nice bonding with the group :)

The sun coming through the open blind made it hard for Eddie to continue sleeping. Although that didn’t stop him from groaning and rolling over, pulling the covers over his head as he did so. It had already been two weeks and Eddie was enjoying himself far more than he had imagined. It was hard to believe that people as different as Richie and Eddie could get along so well. Most nights they would stay up and just talk to each other, sometimes reading their comics together in the silence when their conversations had come to a pause.

“My God Edward, how much sleep could you possibly need? You’ve already been asleep for 10 hours. We have things to do!”

Eddie rolled over to face Richie, still huddled in his cocoon of blankets. He opened one eye and saw Richie sitting cross legged on his own bed, waiting for Eddie to wake up.

“The kids wanna go swimming today, what do you say? I think Bev and Bill are gonna be there with the 8 year olds as well!”

Eddie nodded and lazily motioned for Richie to get out so he could get ready.

By the time Eddie had walked out of the cabin, Richie had already woken everyone up and got them to get into their bathing suits. All the campers looked excited to spend the day relaxing by the pool after the tiring day yesterday (an obstacle course – lots of running), and Eddie couldn’t blame them, he was also looking forward to relaxing.

It was a perfectly warm day outside as Richie and Eddie led the kids to the side of the pool, with instructions to be careful and have fun. The pool area was nicely shaded by some of the large trees growing overhead, but the pool itself was out in the sun, so none of the leaves would fall in. Eddie sat down on the grass underneath one of the trees and began applying his sun lotion. Richie, of course, was already dive bombing into the pool, much to the camper’s delight.

“Eddie!”

Eddie turned around and saw Bev walking up to him, waving, with Bill followed closely behind. She was in a simple bikini, with a large brimmed hat. Eddie had to admit that she did look lovely, and he was sure Bill would agree.

“H-hey Eddie, where R-Richie?”

Eddie pointed over to wear Richie was unsuccessfully diving into the pool. “Hey guys, while you’re here, would you mind putting some sun screen on my back? I can’t reach.”

“W-why don’t you let R-Richie do that for you Eddie?” Bill suggested, wriggling his eyebrows at him.

“Oh, shut up.” Eddie mumbled as Bev took the sunscreen from Eddies hands, giggling to herself as she began to rub the spots Eddie couldn’t reach. “Don’t encourage him Bev, I’ve been getting this shit all week.”

“It’s cute how flustered you get Eddie, but I can ask him to stop if you want me to.” Bev told him quietly, as Bill ran to help get a camper’s ball which had been kicked out of the pool.

“Yeah, I’m sure Bill would do whatever you say.” Eddie turned around to see Bev’s cheeks slightly redder than before. “But don’t worry about it.”

“If you really do like him Eddie, maybe you should tell him, summer isn’t going to last forever, you know.”

“I can’t just _tell_ him Bev, what if he doesn’t like me back? Or doesn’t like boys in general? It’ll ruin everything and I’ll look like an idiot.” Eddie looked out to where Richie was splashing some of the campers, making them scream with laughter. “Besides, what if Henry Bowers founds out?”

“Henry?”

“Yeah, you remember the guy on the very first day when we were all getting introduced?” Henry had seemed to have a vendetta against Eddie since the very first day of camp. He was the one who had pushed Eddie into the lake, nearly drowning him. If Henry found out he was gay, he had a feeling he would take it too well. He may be older then Henry, but he’s definitely not stronger.

“Jesus Christ, does that guy know what year it is?” Bev said angrily.

“Tell me about it.” Eddie glanced up at Beverly who was smiling at something in the distance. He followed her eyes and landed on Bill playing with a couple of campers in the pool. “So… How’s everything going?”

Beverly looked back at Eddie, her brows slightly furrowed in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Like with the campers… And Bill.”

Her cheeks quickly went a light shade of pink and she rolled her eyes, hitting Eddie lightly on the shoulder. “Everything is _fine,_ thank you Eddie.”

Eddie suddenly felt something cold and wet on his shoulders and shrieked. He then heard Richie’s laugh from behind him as he moved around to be in front of Eddie. Bev tried to hide her giggle but failed miserably.

“Oh, Eddie Spaghetti, you should have seen your face!”

“Not funny, asshole,” Eddie grumbled.

Richie grinned at him, his wet curls falling all over his face. “A bit funny.”

Richie called Bill over and the four of them sat on the grass under some shade, making sure to still keep an eye on all the kids. Eddie sighed happily and leaned back on his arms, taking in the perfect day. He smiled at Beverly and Bill who were talking happily, Bev choosing Bill’s lap to lie on, causing Bill to blush slightly. His attention then moved to Richie, who was smiling softly, looking out into the distance.

“What’s on your mind?”

Richie turned to face Eddie and shrugged. “I’m just… Really happy, I guess.”

Eddie smiled back. “Yeah. Me too.”

“So, guys, tell us, what are the 12 year olds like?” Bev questioned, interrupting Eddie’s thoughts.

Richie snorted and shook his head. “Oh Bev, you don’t even know.”

Eddie rolled his eyes at Richie’s dramatic reaction. “Oh, come on Trashmouth, they’re fine.” Eddie had grown quite close with some of the kids and was enjoying this summer much more then he had anticipated.

“Yeah, they were great until we lost one on the hike. I wish she stayed lost, now she has some attitude.”

“ _Richie!”_

“Y-You lost a kid?!” Bill said, surprised.

“Yeah but it’s fine,” Richie responded, waving his hand, “We found her in like, 5 minutes.”

Beverly laughed loudly and shook her head. “Only you, Tozier.”

“Well what about you guys?” Eddie asked, “How are the 8 year olds?”

Bill looked down at Beverly and smiled. “They’re really s-sweet. S-Some get homesick a l-lot but B-Bev always knows how to cheer them up.”

Beverly rolled her eyes, “Oh please Bill, the kids adore you more.”

“I-Impossible, who wouldn’t l-love you?”

“Yes Bill, we know you love Beverly, thank you.”

“ _Beep beep, Richie_ ” Bill said through gritted teeth, glaring at Richie. Bill must have noticed Eddies confused face because he then explained, “It’s what we s-say to him at s-school, when he w-won’t shut u-up.”

Bev laughed again and Eddie smiled, nodding his head. “I’m going to have to remember that one.”

Richie groaned as everyone else laughed. “ _Biiiiilllll,_ ” Richie complained. “Now everyone’s going to be saying it!”

Bill chuckled and Richie threw a handful of dirt at him, missing and instead landing on Beverly’s face who was still lying down.

“ _Richie_!” She shrieked, getting up and grabbing her own handful, chucking it at Richie. Eddie and bill collapsed with laughter, before getting hit in the face themselves. After most the dirt had been pulled up from the ground and the four of them were covered in mud, they all decided to go to the pool to wash off before going to the dining hall to meet the others.

_________________________________

The four friends walked into the dining hall, watching their campers run to their groups before finding their own. They spotted Mike who waved happily while Ben and Stan continued talking.

“Hello gentlemen, how are we on this fine evening?” Richie asked, in a terrible British accent.

“Can someone cut off my ears before he starts talking again.” Stan said in a deadpan voice, not even turning to face Richie.

Richie laughed and slapped Stan on the back, making him jump and grow even more annoyed before sitting down. “Ah, you love me Stan.”

“I suppose.” Stan said, as Bev, Eddie and Bill all sat down opposite him. “After knowing him for so many years it’s hard to get rid of him. Like a mosquito.”

Eddie leaned over the table to get close to Stan. “How have you lasted so long Stan, please, tell us your secrets.”

Richie huffed and crossed his arms. “ _Okay_ , now my feelings are just hurt.”

“Aw, we’re sorry Rich, we really do love you.” Ben said, wrapping his arm around the lanky boy next to him.

“At least _someone_ appreciates me here.”

Bev snorted and shook her head. “Ben likes everyone Rich, I wouldn’t get ahead of yourself.”

“Well okay then, I hate you all.” Bill chuckled at Richie’s statement before Richie leaned over and grabbed Eddies cheeks. “Except you, my little Eddie Spaghetti, I could never hate you.”

Eddie rolled his eyes and smiled, slapping away Richie’s hands. “Thanks, Trashmouth, I’m honored.”

“Hey, what about us?” Mike complained, trying to hide a smile. “I haven’t said anything bad about you, Richie!”

“Ah Mike, I could see it in your eyes.” Richie said woefully, clutching at his heart.

“A-Always the d-dramatic, Richie.” Bill stated, shaking his head.

Their dinner that night was full of laughs and stories, and Eddie had never felt so comfortable with a group before. He was so grateful to have met them all, and said so after they had all finished dessert.

“Aw Eddie! You are the sweetest!” Bev had said, giving him a tight hug, while everyone else nodded and agreed, all smiling happily.

“Bev, we b-better get back t-to our d-dorms.” Bill said, looking at his watch for the time.

“Oh, shit you’re right! Let’s grab the kids, it's their bedtime!”

Mike looked between the two and then back at the group. “Is it just me or did they just become parents.”

Everyone took a moment before agreeing with Mike, causing Bev and Bill to roll their eyes.

“Congratulations Beverly Marsh and William Denbrough, you have now officially become Mum and Dad of our group.” Richie said, bowing down at them.

“You know that means you are definitely the uncle no one is allowed to be around alone, right?” Bev asked, her hands crossed over her chest.

“Oh, I was planning on it.”

“Come on Trashmouth, we have to go to” Eddie said, grabbing Richie’s hand and pulling him away, a smiling still lingering on his lips from the time spent with his friends.


	4. higher and higher

For the first time this summer, Eddie was awake before Richie. Looking over at the bed next to him, Richie was fast asleep, some of his messy curls covering his face. Eddie thought he looked so peaceful and… _cute._

“No… Mr. Banana man… that’s _my_ ice cream… _don’t you walk away from me._ ”

Eddie giggled to himself before opening the door and going to the bathroom, saying good morning to some of the campers playing with a deck of cards on one of the tables.

Eddie exited the bathroom, dressed in his outfit and saw Richie yawning in the doorway of their room.

“Morning sleeping beauty, you were in bed a while. Up late?”

Richie nodded, still yawning, and rubbed his eyes. “Yeah I just… Had some things to think about I guess.”

Eddie nodded back, his eye brows furrowed. “You’re okay, though?”

Richie grinned with his teeth and gave Eddie a side hug, pulling him in close; much to Eddie’s dismay. “Just peachy, Eds, really.”

“Okay, if you’re sure.” Richie’s eyes widened and he gasped dramatically at Eddie. “What?!”

“You didn’t correct me! You didn’t say ‘don’t call me Eds’! That means I can totally say it whenever I want now!” Richie cheered and began to run outside towards the dining hall.

“What- No! No, Trashmouth, it does _not_ work like that! _Richie!_ ”

_________________________________

Eddie and Richie were surprisingly the first people out of their group to arrive at the dining hall. A couple of minutes after Richie and Eddie sat down and began talking, Beverly and Bill walked in, talking to each other very closely. Bev laughed quietly at something Bill said and he smiled lovingly at her.

“Ay lovebirds, over here!”

Beverly and Bill looked up, waving at them as they walked over. Soon the two of them had joined the conversation, laughing with the two boys.

“You guys would not believe what I had to wake up to.” Eddie said, during a break in the conversation.

“W-what?”

“Richie was sleeping talking!”

Richie’s face fell and Bev gasped happily, looking over at Bill, then Eddie.

“No!”

“Yes!”

“Tell us everything!”

“Oh god.” Richie groaned, his face in his hands.

“He was on about some banana man stealing his ice cream or something.”

Bill laughed out loud, hitting the table for dramatic effect, causing Richie to roll his eyes, trying to hide his smile.

“My God Richie, even in your sleep you talk. Do you ever shut up?” Bev asked, shaking her head.

“Who doesn’t shut up? Are we talking about Richie?”

Everyone laughed but Richie, who continued to cross his arms and pout, as Ben and Mike joined them and sat down.

“Hey Stan, we’re with you and Mike today, right?” Eddie asked.

“Sure are, we’re doing the high ropes today.” Stan said, sitting down. “So, what were you discussing before we came in?”

 “We were just talking about Richie sleep talking.”

“Oh man, we have some great stories about that, don’t we Bill? You should hear the things he said this one time when-”

“ _No, Stan!_ ”

_________________________________

Eddie and Richie joined Mike and Stan with the 17 year olds and walked to the far end of the campsite. There, tall wooden posts stood, with ropes attached, like an obstacle course.

“So, this is…high.” Richie said, looking up at the posts.

“Yeah, it’s going to be great!” Mike beamed. “I hope we can go on after the kids have a turn.”

“So, is there… safety?”

“Obviously, Trashmouth. You seriously think we are going to put kids on ropes that high up and not have safety precautions?” Stan asked, with an eyebrow raised.

Mike chuckled and then clapped his hands together, getting attention of both the 12 and the 17 year olds. “Okay guys, can the 17 year olds come with Stan and I to highest post please, and the 12 year olds can go with Richie and Eddie to the other one. Now, if a 12 year old has completed the smallest one, they _can_ do the harder one _if they wish_. One of the 17 year olds, as well as Stan and myself will help.” Mike’s voice boomed over the area. “Okay! Let’s get started!”

It was pretty easy to help the kids get into their safety gear, from there Eddie would just have to coach the kids to continue going as Richie did the same. Sometimes, Eddie would sit on the grass with one of the kids who were too scared to go on, and help them face their fears.

Almost all of the kids had gone over to Mike and Stan, and those who stayed relaxed on the grass to talk to their friends. Mike and Stan were teaching the 17 year olds who wanted to become leaders next year how to put on the safety, and were now letting them take charge. It was actually really sweet to see the 17 year olds look after the 12 year olds so well.

“Hey, maybe we could have a turn now!” Eddie said, smiling at Richie.

Richie nodded, his face suddenly pale. “Great.”

“Richie, you alright?” Eddie asked, a look of concern on his face.

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine!” Eddie didn’t look convinced. “Okay, listen, I’m only afraid of two things; clowns and heights.”

“Oh! Richie, you don’t have to go on if you don’t want to!”

Richie shook his head and looked up at the ropes. “No. I’m going to face my fears today, for you, Eddie spaghetti.”

Eddie rolled his eyes and watched Richie march up the posts.

_________________________________

“ _EDDIE, I CHANGED MY MIND, OH MY FUCKING GOD GET ME DOWN LORD JESUS CHRIST, IS THIS HOW I DIE”_

“He does realise he’s barely off the ground, right?” Mike whispered to Stan.

“Honestly? At this point, I just don’t know.”

_________________________________

The day was finally over and Eddie began packing up his bag, ready to leave for dinner.

“Eddie, you coming?” Richie asked, standing with Mike and Stan.

“You guys go on ahead, I’ve got to pack up some more stuff!” Richie looked like he didn’t want to leave him. “It’s okay! I’ll only be a second!”

Begrudgingly, Richie left with Stan and Mike, leaving Eddie to quickly grab his stuff so he could still catch up with them.

“Well, well, look who it is.”

Eddie froze in place, feeling like a cold wave had just washed over him. He stood up and came face to face with Henry Bowers. He opened his mouth to speak but found nothing came out. Why was he so afraid of this guy?

“What the fuck is all this shit?” Henry said, looking at his backpack and pouring the contents on the floor. Eddie winced, knowing that he would have to pack it all up again. “Did you hear me, you little girly boy? Or I do I have to say it louder?” He hit Eddie’s shoulder which pushed him back slightly.

Eddie just looked down and started packing up his bag again, not wanting to look him in the eye.

“Pathetic.”

Eddie continued to kneel on the ground until he was sure Henry was long gone, and then stood up. He felt hot tears in his eyes as he walked back to his cabin. How could he be so afraid of Henry? Next time Henry wanted to talk to Eddie, he wasn’t going to back down so easily.

He made it to the cabin a lot later than he had originally thought, but hoped Richie would still be inside so they could walk to dinner together. He was starving. The door was closed when Eddie got to their bedroom but opened it without thinking.

“Richie, I need some- SHIT SORRY!”

Eddie went to move to quickly close the door but found that he was stuck standing, looking at Richie who was half way through getting changed and was at the moment, only in his underwear. Unlike Eddie, Richie seemed very calm about the situation and only sniggered at Eddie’s red face as he put on a top.

“I’m… Just gonna…” Eddie slowly backed away from the door, still crimson red.

Richie chuckled. “Okay, Eddie.”

Richie came out a few seconds later, fully dressed and grinned at Eddie, who was still very red. “Shall we go to dinner?”

Eddie just nodded quickly and walked outside with Richie.

“I’m sorry I had to put my shirt on, I know you liked the view.”

“Shut up, Trashmouth.” Eddie mumbled, his cheeks still very red. Suddenly, Eddie remembered he had left his fanny pack with his inhaler inside the cabin and stopped. “Shit, I left my inhaler back in the cabin, I better go back and grab it, I’ll meet you at the dining hall.”

“Wow, did I really take your breath away?” Eddie looked unimpressed. “Okay, okay, you go get it, I’ll meet you at dinner.” Richie gave Eddie a sloppy kiss on the cheek before grinning and walking away, whistling happily as he did so. Eddie smiled at him and turned to walk back to his cabin.

“Hey Kaspbrak!”

The voice of Henry Bowers came booming towards him. Eddie sighed, and for the time, he wasn’t scared of Henry. Eddie was 18, an _adult_ , he could handle himself.

“Hey _girly,_ I was talking to you!”

Eddie rolled his eyes and turned around. “Were you? All I heard coming out your mouth was an annoying buzz. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go to my cabin-”

“I saw you with your _boyfriend_ just then, the fuck was that?”

Eddie tensed up but continued to stand his ground, not wanting to show any fear. Besides, what did Henry think this was? The 50s? He wasn’t ashamed of who he was. If Henry didn’t like it, he could deal with it. “Richie’s not my boyfriend, Henry. And you better be careful, isn’t your dad a cop? I’m sure he wouldn’t like it if you got kicked out of camp. Now I really have to go to my-”

Eddie felt it before he saw it. Henry Bowers fist collided with Eddie’s face, and he fell face first into the dirt beneath him.

“What the _fuck_ , Bowers?!”

Henry pinned Eddie to the ground and yelled at him, inches away from his face.

“ ** _What did you say about my dad?!”_** He shook Eddie up and down, spitting on him slightly as he yelled. **_“_** You don’t know _anything_ about me, you _queer_. I’m _tired_ of you _parading_ your _sick_ life in front of me. I’m going to make you _regret_ you were ever _around_ Richie Tozier.”

Eddie closed his eyes, feeling Henry punch him, this time in the stomach, knocking the air out of him. He wished he had his inhaler with him, he could really use it about now. Henry hit him again, yelling disgusting insults at Eddie while doing so. Eddie tried his best to cover his face, tears stinging his eyes. How could someone be full of so much hate? He was praying for this to just end; his whole body was in pain and he was _so_ tired.

He suddenly felt Henry weight get lifted off him and opened his eyes. Although his vision was slightly blurry, he saw Stan kneeling next to him, while Ben and Mike tried to restrain a very angry Henry.

“ _Fuck_ Eddie! Are you okay?!”

Eddie pushed his head up slightly, but hissed at the pain that caused his body and laid down again.

“Just peachy, thank you Stan.”

“I’m going to get this asshole to the front office.” Mike said, glaring at Henry.

“I’ll come with you” Ben said, nodding at Mike before pushing Henry forward towards the office.

Stan looked down at Eddie, worriedly. Eddie weakly smiled at him and finally stood up, Stan following his lead.

“Do you want me to walk you to the nurses’ office?”

Eddie nodded and followed Stan, who stood beside him the whole time. Eddie was so grateful for having a friend like him, and in no time the nurse had cleaned him all up and told him Henry would not be bothering him anymore.

“Okay, should we go to dinner? I think Lilian would probably want to speak to you there.”

Eddie felt like he was about to fall asleep on the spot, so he shook his head. “I’m really tired, I might just go to bed. Can you tell her and everyone else that I’ll speak to them tomorrow?”

Stan nodded and Eddie smiled gratefully. “Are you okay to walk there on your own, though?”

“Yeah, my cabin is really close. Thank you for everything Stan, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Stan gave Eddie one of his rare hugs and left towards the dining hall, looking back at Eddie a few times as he did so.

_________________________________

Eddie walked into his cabin and was surprised to see Richie sitting on his bed. As soon as Eddie walked in, Richie stood up, his breathing heavy.

“Eddie?! Eddie, fuck, Ben told me what happened, when you didn’t come to dinner I was so confused and, _fuck Eddie_ , I don’t know-”

“Why did you kiss me?”

Richie’s face fell immediately, confused. “What?”

“I said, why did you kiss me.”

“I-I don’t know, I thought it was just a stupid joke, I guess-”

“A joke?!” Eddie scoffed. “Well, Henry Bowers certainly didn’t think so. You know, when he beat me up.”

Richie looked like he was about to cry, his face was so hurt. “Eddie… I am so sorry, I didn’t mean-”

“No, you don’t seem to mean anything, yet you still screw everything up Richie!”

Richie was definitely about to cry. “I’m just going to go.” He mumbled, and walked outside.

Eddie sighed, pissed at himself more than Richie. Eddie was way too harsh to him and he had to apologize. But he was _so tired_. It could wait until morning, Eddie decided, crawling into his bed and falling asleep almost immediately.

He woke an hour later when Richie opened the door and walked inside, getting into bed and not saying a word. Eddie could see that he was facing the wall, away from him.

Eddie found it harder to get to sleep that time.

_________________________________

_“I’ll blow you for a dime, I’ll blow you for free”_

Eddie quickly awoke, his eyes wide like deer in headlights. He hated that dream. He turned to fall back to sleep when he noticed Richie was missing from his bed. Confused, he got up and checked to see if he was using the bathroom. He wasn’t. Reluctantly, he opened the door of the cabin and stepped out to the warm night air to find his friend. He was hesitant on leaving the kids alone but knew they would all be asleep as his watch read 2:34am.

Eddie looked around, with only the moon and the small light above the door to help him see. He spotted a silhouette in the distance, by the lake, and began to walk towards them, assuming it was Richie. It took a couple of minutes to reach the figure, and by the time he did he realised it was definitely his friend. The moonlight shone on his face slightly, and he didn’t even realise Eddie was standing behind him, keeping his eyes firmly on the horizon.  

“Richie?” He still didn’t look up. “Richie, look at me.”

“It’s my fault, Eddie.”

Eddie took a sharp breath and looked down at the ground, trying to ignore the pain in his face.

“Richie, you know that’s not true-”

“It’s my fault. If I hadn’t made that stupid joke, Henry wouldn’t have jumped on you.” Richie moved his hand quickly over his eye, and Eddie knew he was crying. “God, I’m such an idiot, Eddie. You’re right, I always fuck everything up!”

Eddie sat down next to his friend and sighed. “Richie, you know I don’t blame you, you didn’t know Henry was there. It was so wrong of me to yell at you like that. I was just frustrated and I took it out on you. You would never hurt me, Richie.”

Eddie looked into Richie’s eyes and saw them like he had never seen them before. The brightest star in the night sky couldn’t compare to Richie’s eyes in this moment. Eddie went to move one of Richie’s dark curls which had fallen on his face, while Richie studied Eddie’s face silently. He had never seen Richie look so concentrated before. Richie glanced down at Eddie’s lips and moved forward slightly. Eddie took a deep breath and when Richie noticed that he hadn’t moved away, he captured Eddie’s lips with his own.

Richie’s lips were warm and comforting, and he tasted like mints and cinnamon. They pulled apart slowly, their noses still lightly touching and their breathing heavy. Richie moved his hand to trace along Eddie’s jawline, eventually tracing every part of Eddie’s face with his fingertips. Eddie watched him silently, a soft expression on his face. Richie closed his eyes again and put his arm on Eddie’s neck.

“Eddie…” Richie breathed out, his breath tickling Eddie’s face. Eddie didn’t know what to say to him, and so he stayed silent. Richie kissed his check softly once and then moved to his lips before moving away from him completely.

It was like the two of them were suddenly out of a trance, and Eddie’s cheeks became pink with the realization of what he’d done. Richie stood up slowly and put his hand out to pull Eddie up. They both walked back to the cabin without saying a word, although this time their hands were intertwined.


End file.
